The Beast of Sorna
by Galionne
Summary: For months, a monster has been rumored to roam Isla Sorna, a small island of fishermen. When a mangled body is found, mayor Peter Ludlow has no choice but to call for the help of a group of hunters, suspecting the animal to be a freak experiment created by his mad scientist uncle. When a second group flies to the island in hopes of studying the creature however, things turn sour...


Peter Ludlow groaned as he stomped through the vegetation, a machete in one hand and a flashlight in the other.

"Where the hell are these idiots?" he mumbled as he pushed through the ferns.

He'd been searching through the jungle for the better part of the afternoon and there was still no sign of the Stark brothers. These two rascals seemed to have an innate aptitude to get themselves in trouble...He sighed and turned to his right, calling out into the darkness.

"Carter! Anything on your side?"

He heard a voice yell 'no' back to him and shook his head. Carter had always been a close friend of the brothers, so if even he couldn't find them... This was no good. He pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled loudly. Dieter and Arin weren't bad kids, really... But they were still hot-headed, impulsive troublemakers who didn't listen to anyone- and especially not Ludlow. And ever since the sightings of the so-called beast had started, they'd been even worse...

Peter groaned, even louder and more irate this time. He knew it was all just fantasies and grand tales to scare children into not entering the forest alone ; just like _huppias_, forest spirits and other boogeymen. He had been told these legends time and time again ever since moving to the island as a child with his mother ; and of course never believed a single word from the drunk fishermen and overbearing, superstitious mothers who seemed so dead set on instilling the fear of ghosts into him... But alas, it seemed the Stark brothers only shared a handful of functioning brain cells between the two of them, and they believed those tales without question. It didn't help that so called "sightings" of a strange animal had started just a few months ago. Villagers would suddenly claim they'd seen a horrifying beast roaming the fields and the jungle around the village. Some believed they had seen a tiger swimming near the port late at night ; others claimed it to be some sort of giant crocodile ; some even seemed convinced it was a giant bird! It was complete, utter madness... Peter did have to admit there had been a few odd incidents ; a cow found partially eaten here, a dog going missing there...

But nothing that should cause such panic. After all, cattle being attacked wasn't anything new... The island had always been home to wild crocodiles and caimans. Their territory was far enough from the town that they weren't a threat, but cows and even sometimes house pets would occasionally wander off too far and get attacked. As for the sightings, well... They never seemed to be describing the same beast. The size would vary from just a few feet long to a monstrous length ; the color and shape always changed ; some claimed they heard the animal talk, others heard it whistle or sing... Nothing was ever consistent. Peter was certain these sightings were all of perfectly normal, non-magical, non-superstitious animals- if only a bit transformed by odd beliefs and one too many glasses of guaro...

So, all in all, nothing to worry about... Except, of course, for Dieter and Arin Stark.

The pair didn't really care about the animal per say ; but they were adventurous young men and life on Isla Sorna was always a little dull. It was, after all, a small island cut away from the rest world after all ; with a small fishing town as the only sign of civilisation and very, very few trips to the mainland every months or so ; so any bit of adventure the two young adults could get into was studied for five seconds at best before the pair dove in. So there they were, chasing after some imaginary beast while Peter chased after them in a vain attempt to keep them out of anymore trouble...

"Mister Ludlow! Mister Ludlow! Over here!"

Peter jumped and swiftly turned around, running towards the sound of Carter's voice. He clumsily climbed over a large fallen tree and fell with a loud thump on the other side, right next to the other man. He groaned as he got up, not immediately noticing Carter's pale face and horrified expression.

"Right, so where are they-", Peter asked as he looked to where the other man was pointing with his flashlight.

Once he saw what he was looking at however ; his snarky attitude dropped.

The light was shining over a large patch of grass which had been up turned and trampled in an apparent fight ; soil dug up in places and branches snapped everywhere. But it wasn't the signs of the scuffle that had stopped the pair in their track... Rather, it was the massive pool of blood right in the center of it.

"Shit..."

Peter approached nervously, standing just at the edge of the blood bath.

"Oh goodness... Do you think it could be animal...?" he asked nervously, before stopping abruptly when Carter moved his light.

He hadn't really noticed it at first- or rather, he hadn't paid any attention to it. He'd thought it to be a log, or a heap of dirt... But now that it was bathed in light, he could see it clearly.

A severed human leg.

Covered in old scars and still fitted with a blood-soaked sock and a brown hiker's boot...

A gentle sob broke through the silence, making Peter and Carter jump. The younger man turned around and pointed his light towards the source of the sound, which seemed to be the top of a nearby pine tree. Dieter was curled up on one of the higher branches, grabbing onto the trunk as he sobbed loudly.

"-Dieter! Are you okay? What happened? where's Arin-?, Peter shouted before Carter interrupted him.

-With all that blood and that leg where do you _think_ he is?" he snarled.

Dieter meanwhile didn't answer, remaining completely quiet except for the occasional sob. It didn't seem like he was even aware of their presence.

"He's in shock... I'll go and get him."

As he spoke Carter shoved his flashlight and backpack in Peter's hands. He pushed his sleeves up and began hastily climbing up the tree while the older man stayed on the ground, glancing around anxiously as he held the lamp in shaky hands. A strong wave of anxiety suddenly washed over him as he was left on his own ; the corner of his eyes catching just enough of the blood pool to make him nauseous...

It took Carter a few minutes to reach Dieter ; and once he did he could see the state his friend was in more clearly. As he expected, it was no good... Dieter was pale and trembling, his eyes wide and his nails bloody from scratching the bark. His face was also grimy with what seemed like a mix of soil and blood as a deep gash ran across his left cheek.

"Dieter... God, what happened to you...?"

The younger man only whimpered pathetically before letting out a long, drawn out sob. Carter shook his head with a resigned sigh. He turned and reached an arm behind him, pulling Dieter onto his back and securing him as best could before starting to make the climb down. It took a few seconds but the human contact seemed to appease the younger man ; even if only just a bit...

It took a little longer to get down but Carter still managed, finally setting foot on solid ground. Peter quickly joined him and there was a moment of tense, awkward silence as the pair looked at each other. Neither of them really had any idea on what to do next. The situation felt so... Surreal... Even Peter, who usually loved nothing more than to be snarky and sarcastic, had nothing to say.

In the end it was Carter who was the first to break the heavy silence.

"We need to leave. There's nothing we can do for now, except get Dieter home... Before anything else happens..."

Peter felt a knot in his throat and guts but simply nodded. Carter was right, unfortunately... That particular brown boot, the scars on the leg: there was no doubt it was Arin- or sadly what was left of him... Peter shuddered. The poor kid... He was still having difficulties actually believing what he had seen ; what had happened... And what did happen, actually? There was no animal on the island that could have done such a thing... Costa Rica did have a few big cats such as jaguars and pumas, but they had all been exterminated from Isla Sorna years before Peter even arrived there. As for crocodiles and caimans they never hunted far from rivers and lakes, and there was nothing of the sort anywhere near the area where they had found the leg...

The sudden, loud crunch of a branch snapped Peter out of his thoughts, making him jump and whip around in an instant. He pointed his flashlight towards the dense vegetation and nervously checked for any movement. For a moment, he thought it might have just been a bird or a lost dog ; maybe even his imagination.

Then, he saw it.

It was only there for a split second before it disappeared back into the jungle, but the image was burned into Peter's mind. A fiery amber, sliced upwards by a single line of inky darkness.

And just below it two rows of sharp, bloodied teeth...

Six feet above ground.

He froze for a moment, feeling his blood run cold. His grip weakened and the flashlight dropped out of his trembling fingers and onto the messy forest floor. Then, as if something had snapped in him he suddenly bolted. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him ; past Carter ; past the trees ; past the edge of the forest and into the village. He ran straight to his house ; fumbling with his keys to get the door open then bolted inside, grabbed his landline phone and began feverishly dialing.

What he'd seen wasn't a crocodile.

It wasn't a puma, a jaguar, a tiger or any kind of animal he had ever seen.

He felt as though his world had collapsed. Everything he'd learned, everything he ever thought he knew didn't hold up anymore. Suddenly folk tales were making all too much sense.

What he'd seen was no animal.

It couldn't be.

It was a spirit.

It was _a huppia_...


End file.
